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Man charged with fraud worth Rub 1,5 bln to stand trial in Moscow

More than three thousand people are the injured parties in the case

MOSCOW, November 19 (Itar-Tass) — One person charged with fraud to the tune of almost 1.5 billion roubles will stand trial in Moscow. More than three thousand people are the injured parties in the case, the press service of the Moscow police told Itar-Tass.

The police also said that the second suspect in the case has absconded and was put in the wanted list.

The Central Investigation Department of the Russian Interior Ministry’s (MVD) department for Moscow sent to the Ostankino District Court of the city for trial on the merits a criminal case of fraud worth 437 million roubles, the police said. “Criminal proceedings under Article 159, part 4 of the RF Criminal Code “large-scale fraud,” were instituted over this incident. One of the suspects has been detained and arrested, and charges have been brought against him. His accomplice is on the federal wanted list,” the press service explained.

According to investigators, the two suspects, having carefully studied the features of the market for the production and processing of gold-bearing ore, acquired the ZL company, naming it an “investment company,” although they did not have the right to engage in investment activity. Then they equipped an office for the sale of promissory notes of this company and hired employees.

For the attraction of more investors (buyers of the promissory notes) the malefactors invited experts in network marketing, who spread false information about the company activity in the sale of jewellery, construction of a plant for the mining and processing of gold-bearing ore in the Republic of Peru, as well as about the high percentage of monthly payments on ZL bills.

The press service of the Moscow police also said that one of the suspects registered in the Republic of Peru in his name the ZL Minera joint-stock company and opened a bank account to which money from the sale of the promissory notes were transferred.

“Thus the perpetrators in the period from October 2005 to May 2007 sold promissory notes to the total sum of about 437 million roubles. Currently the investigation has information that more than three thousand people have been affected by the crime,” the department said.